You're as tight as a hunter's trap
Hidden well, what are you concealing
Poker face, carved in stone
Amongst friends, but all alone
Why do you hide
-- James "Say Something"
?Come on, Riley,? Pippa whined. ?It'll be fun. Peter is hot. He wants to meet you.?
Riley looked up from her psychology book and frowned at her best friend and roommate. ?Pip, I told you that I can't. I have a big test tomorrow and I really need to study.? She looked back down at her textbook and started reading again, considering the subject closed.
Pippa Westmoreland was as cute as her name ? petite, blond with green eyes. She was a French Lit student at Boston University. She'd picked a useless major because she fully expected to marry rich and not have to work for the rest of her life. With her bubbly personality and her flirting, this wasn't as far fetched as one might think. If anyone had what it took to be a trophy wife, it was Pippa.
Riley, on the other hand, was studying psychology in order to have a leg up on her peers when she got into law school. Riley had determined at a young age that she would never leave her future in the hands of her husband. She wanted to be firmly control of everything that happened to her.
Pippa turned away from the mirror where she had been applying make-up. She went over to Riley's desk and closed the text book, snatching it away and tossing it into a corner of the girls' shared room. Riley snapped her head up, glaring daggers at the other girl. ?What the hell, Pippa??
?You're coming out with us tonight. And then you'll ace the test tomorrow because you're smart. You've never flunked a test in your entire life.? Pippa sat down on the corner of the desk and said in a soft voice, ?Come on, Riley. You can't hide in our room for the rest of college. Not all boys are like Blake.?
Riley's mouth compressed into a thin, angry line and she crossed her arms protectively over her chest. ?I told you to never say that asshole's name again.?
?It's true. Besides, Andy says Peter's a nice guy. He's from Iowa; how dangerous could he be?? Pippa smiled mischievously. ?I'll let you wear that black skirt of mine you like so much.?
Riley snorted and stood up. She towered over the tiny blond girl by at least six inches. ?Yeah, and have my ass hanging out all night? I don't think so.? She sighed deeply and went to her closet. ?Where are we going??
Pippa squealed with glee and clapped her hands together. ?You'll come? Really??
?Yes, I'll come.? Pippa was right ? Riley didn't need to study. She knew the material backwards and forwards. And while she rationally knew that every boy was nothing like her evil ex-boyfriend, the cheating bastard, she was still fearful of getting close to someone again. She bit her lip and dragged out a pair of skin-tight blue jeans and a tiny emerald green tank top. She held them out to Pippa. ?Is this okay??
The other girl nodded and pointed to a pair of black boots, the heels of which were three inches. Riley shook her head emphatically. ?Are you kidding me? I'll be taller than everyone there!?
?Relax, Riley. Peter's like six foot three or something. Plus those boots will make your legs look killer.?
Riley shot Pippa a withering glare and then started changing her clothing. She allowed Pippa to fuss over her hair and make-up as well, after Pippa had stood making faces in the mirror as Riley applied simple lip gloss and left her hair hanging down. ?You're so beautiful, Riley. I don't understand why you don't take advantage of it more.?
?Because, unlike someone I know and love, I didn't come to school to land a husband. I came to school to actually learn something.?
?Well, we can't all be valedictorians of our high school class and make Dean's list every semester of college. We all play to our strengths, O'Rourke. My strengths happen to be in dating.?
Riley rolled her eyes and the girls grabbed their jackets and bags and stepped out of their room, into the hallway of the dorm. Most of the doors on their floor were open ? it seemed there was a dorm-wide party that night and the other girls were going in and out at will, some carrying bottles of beer, others carrying less legal substances. Pippa took Riley's hand and they headed downstairs, to wait on the sidewalk in front of their building.
The early November night was cool and cloudless. The moon was full, shining its sickly light down on the campus, painting everything silver. Trees had finally shed the last of their leaves and the branches reached up into the starry night like the fingers of a dead man. Riley shivered and clutched her coat tighter around her. ?This is such a mistake. He's not going to like me, Pip. I'm too tall. Too nerdy.? Riley turned to go back into the safety of the door. Pippa snagged her arm, surprisingly strong for such a small girl.
?No, Riley. You're going to come out with me and Andrew tonight. You're going to meet Peter. He's going to like you because you're beautiful and you're smart and you're funny. If he can't see that, then he's a complete douche-bag who doesn't deserve eyes.?
Riley gave her friend a small, thankful smile and hugged her. ?What would I do without you??
?You'd be bored as hell.? Pippa smiled and hugged Riley back, holding her tightly for a moment. A green Jeep pulled up in front of the dorm, blasting Blink 182. Pippa let go of Riley and went to the Jeep, and slid into the passenger's seat. Riley closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, then she jumped into the rear seat beside a boy she assumed was Peter.
?Oh, hey, Ri,? said Andrew from behind the wheel. He was a tall boy with broad shoulders, lightly tanned skin and a dimple in his right cheek. Andrew nodded to the boy sitting beside Riley, ?That's Pete. Peter Colbjornssen, this is Riley O'Rourke. She's a psych major so make her talk more than she listens.? Andrew grinned and then put the Jeep in gear and took off.
Riley looked over at Peter and guessed that his family was only a few generations removed from Scandinavia. He was tall, much taller than she had expected, and broad. With his long, shaggy blond hair and piercing, intelligent blue eyes, it was easy to imagine him striding across fjords or whatever, carrying a broadsword to plunder a village. He smiled at Riley and nodded. ?Nice to meet you,? he said in a soft voice. Riley decided that maybe it was a good idea that Pippa had dragged her out tonight after all. She sat back in her seat and turned to Peter, falling into an easy conversation with him. Pippa had been right about another thing ? not all boys were *** like Blake.
Hidden well, what are you concealing
Poker face, carved in stone
Amongst friends, but all alone
Why do you hide
-- James "Say Something"
?Come on, Riley,? Pippa whined. ?It'll be fun. Peter is hot. He wants to meet you.?
Riley looked up from her psychology book and frowned at her best friend and roommate. ?Pip, I told you that I can't. I have a big test tomorrow and I really need to study.? She looked back down at her textbook and started reading again, considering the subject closed.
Pippa Westmoreland was as cute as her name ? petite, blond with green eyes. She was a French Lit student at Boston University. She'd picked a useless major because she fully expected to marry rich and not have to work for the rest of her life. With her bubbly personality and her flirting, this wasn't as far fetched as one might think. If anyone had what it took to be a trophy wife, it was Pippa.
Riley, on the other hand, was studying psychology in order to have a leg up on her peers when she got into law school. Riley had determined at a young age that she would never leave her future in the hands of her husband. She wanted to be firmly control of everything that happened to her.
Pippa turned away from the mirror where she had been applying make-up. She went over to Riley's desk and closed the text book, snatching it away and tossing it into a corner of the girls' shared room. Riley snapped her head up, glaring daggers at the other girl. ?What the hell, Pippa??
?You're coming out with us tonight. And then you'll ace the test tomorrow because you're smart. You've never flunked a test in your entire life.? Pippa sat down on the corner of the desk and said in a soft voice, ?Come on, Riley. You can't hide in our room for the rest of college. Not all boys are like Blake.?
Riley's mouth compressed into a thin, angry line and she crossed her arms protectively over her chest. ?I told you to never say that asshole's name again.?
?It's true. Besides, Andy says Peter's a nice guy. He's from Iowa; how dangerous could he be?? Pippa smiled mischievously. ?I'll let you wear that black skirt of mine you like so much.?
Riley snorted and stood up. She towered over the tiny blond girl by at least six inches. ?Yeah, and have my ass hanging out all night? I don't think so.? She sighed deeply and went to her closet. ?Where are we going??
Pippa squealed with glee and clapped her hands together. ?You'll come? Really??
?Yes, I'll come.? Pippa was right ? Riley didn't need to study. She knew the material backwards and forwards. And while she rationally knew that every boy was nothing like her evil ex-boyfriend, the cheating bastard, she was still fearful of getting close to someone again. She bit her lip and dragged out a pair of skin-tight blue jeans and a tiny emerald green tank top. She held them out to Pippa. ?Is this okay??
The other girl nodded and pointed to a pair of black boots, the heels of which were three inches. Riley shook her head emphatically. ?Are you kidding me? I'll be taller than everyone there!?
?Relax, Riley. Peter's like six foot three or something. Plus those boots will make your legs look killer.?
Riley shot Pippa a withering glare and then started changing her clothing. She allowed Pippa to fuss over her hair and make-up as well, after Pippa had stood making faces in the mirror as Riley applied simple lip gloss and left her hair hanging down. ?You're so beautiful, Riley. I don't understand why you don't take advantage of it more.?
?Because, unlike someone I know and love, I didn't come to school to land a husband. I came to school to actually learn something.?
?Well, we can't all be valedictorians of our high school class and make Dean's list every semester of college. We all play to our strengths, O'Rourke. My strengths happen to be in dating.?
Riley rolled her eyes and the girls grabbed their jackets and bags and stepped out of their room, into the hallway of the dorm. Most of the doors on their floor were open ? it seemed there was a dorm-wide party that night and the other girls were going in and out at will, some carrying bottles of beer, others carrying less legal substances. Pippa took Riley's hand and they headed downstairs, to wait on the sidewalk in front of their building.
The early November night was cool and cloudless. The moon was full, shining its sickly light down on the campus, painting everything silver. Trees had finally shed the last of their leaves and the branches reached up into the starry night like the fingers of a dead man. Riley shivered and clutched her coat tighter around her. ?This is such a mistake. He's not going to like me, Pip. I'm too tall. Too nerdy.? Riley turned to go back into the safety of the door. Pippa snagged her arm, surprisingly strong for such a small girl.
?No, Riley. You're going to come out with me and Andrew tonight. You're going to meet Peter. He's going to like you because you're beautiful and you're smart and you're funny. If he can't see that, then he's a complete douche-bag who doesn't deserve eyes.?
Riley gave her friend a small, thankful smile and hugged her. ?What would I do without you??
?You'd be bored as hell.? Pippa smiled and hugged Riley back, holding her tightly for a moment. A green Jeep pulled up in front of the dorm, blasting Blink 182. Pippa let go of Riley and went to the Jeep, and slid into the passenger's seat. Riley closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, then she jumped into the rear seat beside a boy she assumed was Peter.
?Oh, hey, Ri,? said Andrew from behind the wheel. He was a tall boy with broad shoulders, lightly tanned skin and a dimple in his right cheek. Andrew nodded to the boy sitting beside Riley, ?That's Pete. Peter Colbjornssen, this is Riley O'Rourke. She's a psych major so make her talk more than she listens.? Andrew grinned and then put the Jeep in gear and took off.
Riley looked over at Peter and guessed that his family was only a few generations removed from Scandinavia. He was tall, much taller than she had expected, and broad. With his long, shaggy blond hair and piercing, intelligent blue eyes, it was easy to imagine him striding across fjords or whatever, carrying a broadsword to plunder a village. He smiled at Riley and nodded. ?Nice to meet you,? he said in a soft voice. Riley decided that maybe it was a good idea that Pippa had dragged her out tonight after all. She sat back in her seat and turned to Peter, falling into an easy conversation with him. Pippa had been right about another thing ? not all boys were *** like Blake.